Belly Pan

Today I did something I've been dreading. After finishing removing the last bit of interior skin to expose the J-channel, it was finally time to attack the belly pan. I must remove this aluminum belly skin in the back half of the trailer for several reasons. First, I need to inspect the frame for damage. Second, it's the only way to access the bolts that hold the floor down, which I need to do to remove the rotted floor and replace it with good. And finally, it was pretty badly corroded, had lots of haphazard patches, and was torn away and falling down in places. So, it had to go.

I originally planned to use my tin snips to cut it away. Steve did this successfully, and I wanted to be as manly as Steve. But then Frank convinced me to buy some electric shears from his favorite store, and man am I glad I did.


The actual marking and cutting with the electric shears took maybe 10-15 minutes total. However, removing 40+ years worth of rusted bolts and slotted screws took a ton of time. Patience, and beer, are the key requirements for this task.


Get in my belly !

And here is the frame from underneath the trailer, with belly skin removed. You can see the x-member angled across the left is heavily rusted, the bottom of it is completely gone, and it will need to be replaced. The one just aft of that is also heavily rusted though not quite as bad, but will still need replacement. But the x-member at the top right appears only to have surface rust as do the ones in front of it. There's also an outrigger that is completely broken off.



Tomorrow, I plan to remove the floor, and I'll update then.